Milan Vidmar

Milan Vidmar was born on June 22, 1885 in Ljubljana, Austria-Hungary (now Slovenia). He was an electrical engineer, chess player, chess theorist, philosopher and writer. He was a specialist in power transformers and transmission of electric current.

Vidmar began to study mechanical engineering at the University of Vienna in 1902 and graduated in 1907. He got his doctor's degree in 1911 from the Technical faculty in Vienna. He was a professor at the University of Ljubljana, a member of the Slovene Academy of Arts and Sciences (SAZU), and the founder of the Faculty of Electrical engineering. Between 1928 and 1929, he was the 10th Chancellor of the University of Ljubljana. In 1948, he established the Institute of Electrotechnics that now bears his name.

Milan Vidmar was also a top-class International Grandmaster of chess. He ranked fourth among the world elite that included Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, and Euwe, as the only amateur player among professionals. The Slovene Chess Federation organizes an international chess grandmaster tournament named the Milan Vidmar memorial.

His successes include victories at some of the top chess tournaments of his time: Carlsbad 1907, Prague 1908, San Sebastian 1911, Budapest 1912, Vienna 1918, London 1922, Hastings 1925, Semming 1926, New York 1927, London 1927, Bled 1939, Basel 1952. He died on October 9, 1962.

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